Hello! I am getting married in a few months, and we wanted to plant a tree together as part of our ceremony. Ideally, we would go home and plant this in our yard, but we aren't homeowners yet and don't anticipate buying a home for 3-5 years.

My parents (based in central IL) have offered to care for the tree until we have a place for it. Do you have any suggestions for a good future shade tree that is easily transplantable in 3-5 years and can tolerate a variety of soil conditions? We don't anticipate settling down further north than the Wisconsin border.

I was thinking of an English Walnut because I love the tree, but haven't seen much online about transplantability. Do you have any suggestions?

Hi Erin:

Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials and I really like the idea of a 'Wedding Tree.'

English walnut won't be a good choice due to its frost susceptibility -- they just don't thrive very well in central and northern Illinois.

Personally, I would choose something native with a showy display of spring flowers like cucumber magnolia or yellow-poplar; however, the choice is entirely yours!

The Morton Arboretum has a great tree selection website based on your visual/aesthetic preferences and geographic location:

https://mortonarb.org/plant-and-protect/trees-and-plants/

Best of luck and congratulations!!!